The Bad Place
by Orison
Summary: Well there isn't really one since it's a short fic. After watching the scene where Faith visits Bosco in his hospital room I knew I HAD to write something about it. This is Bosco's POV as he listens to her words.


**The Bad Place (1/1)**

Disclaimer: I still own nothing. If you sue me, you'd even have to pay for my plane ticket. :)

Rating: PG-13, just to be sure.

Spoilers: General knowledge of the series up through season five.

Summary: Well there isn't really one since it's a short fic. After watching the scene where Faith visits Bosco in his hospital room I knew I HAD to write something about it. This is Bosco's POV as he listens to her words.

Author's note: So my man will be back. Soon. insert grin here

I'm working on Faith's POV on this very same scene, and there'll probably be more of this as soon as TPTB let us know what they have in mind for him.

Enjoy!

_Hey, Bosco_...

Faith?

Faith, is that you?

I try to open my eyes but find out that I can't.

Everything around me is dark and unfamiliar, and panic immediately grips me as I struggle to remember where I am.

Faith?

I want to tell her that I'm right here, but my body doesn't react.

What the hell is wrong with me?

_I just talked to the doctor and, uh... he said you're gonna be alright._

My doctor?

That should explain why I hurt all over.

I'm in the hospital. Again.

Something is different this time though. I've been shot before, but it never felt like this. It's not just the tube in my throat, or this weird feeling like I'm floating in mid-air, it's something deeper. Call it hindsight or whatever, but I can tell this is serious.

Her voice waivers as she says I'm gonna be alright, and I can't help wondering if she's hiding something. Thirteen years of friendship have trained me to catch even the slightest change in her tone.

_So is your mom. She's still here, but she's better._

Ma?

Faith, what are you talking about?

I desperately try to move but to no avail.

I want to scream out in frustration.

My mother's hurt and I can't even remember why.

I'm trapped inside this body, damned to hear everything that happens around me but unable to communicate.

Thoughts and images rush in my head at a furious pace.

I see flowers. Lots of them.

A room bathed in soft light.

And a casket in the middle of it.

I see Ma crying and everything becomes clear.

I remember now.

I remember every detail as if it happened just minutes ago.

Mikey's disfigured body. A guy driving his car into the wake. My mother's arm pinned under it.

Donald Mann.

Faith's alarmed voice as she tries to get our attention. Masked gunmen opening fire on us.

Suddenly another thought hits me, and I'm overwhelmed by fear.

Is she hurt too?

I remember pushing her out of the way, hurling myself between her and the killer. I didn't even give it a thought. After everything that had happened to my family, I couldn't bear losing her too.

Time seemed to stand still. A burning pain exploded in my chest and face as we both fell to the pavement, my arm still draped protectively around her. I knew I'd been hit, but as long as I'd kept her safe I didn't really care about that.

The sound of gunfire and glass shattering is the last memory I have of those terrible moments.

Then nothing.

I have no idea how much time has passed since then, but I guess if she's talking to me then she's alright.

The thought should comfort me, yet it's not enough. I need to see it for myself.

Talk to me, Faith. Tell me you're okay.

Damn. I'd give anything to open my eyes, even for just one second.

_And hey..._

There it is. Again. The feeling that she's holding something back.

Please, Faith. You know I can hear you.

I need to know the truth.

Partners don't lie to each other, remember?

It's hard enough to be stuck in this bad, dark place. Standing between life and death, disconnected from reality.

I'm afraid I might end up breaking my promise after all.

I told Ma I wouldn't die before her, but for the first time in my life I fear I might lose the battle.

The doctor in the OR wasn't too optimist either. I heard him talking about a chaplain, telling the nurse to hurry up.

Guess I proved him wrong so far.

That's who I am, right?

_About Donald Mann..._

What?

What is it?

Now I'm sure something's wrong, and I brace myself for the bad news.

Cruz and Davis were in the room with us. What if one of them got hit? No, I can sense it's not about that. She wouldn't have mentioned Mann if it was.

That son of a bitch.

I swear to God he's gonna pay for what he did. As soon as I get out of here I'll make sure he gets what he deserves. Too many people have suffered because of him.

_I just want you to know that I took care of that for you._

I knew I wasn't gonna like the news, but this is worse than I expected.

Her voice falters again, as if she's reluctant to let the words out. It's okay, I don't need to hear anything else. Their meaning is perfectly clear.

She killed him.

For me.

If this doesn't speak volumes about trust and devotion I don't know what does.

A hundred questions run into my head.

How did she find him? The man is a master when it comes to covering his tracks. Sergeant Wynn and her team have tried to get him for years.

Did he go down without a fight? Somehow I find that difficult to believe.

Talk to me, Faith. I wanna know everything.

I don't think she was armed when she came to the wake so maybe she wasn't alone when it happened.

The thought that she knows about my ankle holster does nothing to reassure me.

Man, this is bad. Real bad.

_... Okay?_

No, Faith. It's not okay. Not even close.

You've got enough problems as it is. I'm not worth it. You don't deserve to go to jail because of me.

I'm the one who got you shot, remember? I screw up everything I touch.

I know why you did it and I'll never thank you enough for that, but what if IAB finds out? You can't risk losing your family again.

You've been through a lot lately, coming back to work and everything. I was supposed to be there for you, only I've been too focused on my own problems to worry about anything else. First Allie Nardo using my mother to threaten me, then all the stuff with Mikey. I hoped there would be a better time to try and sort things out. Now I'm not even sure I'll be able to talk again.

_I..._

God, I hate it when she cries.

_It's over. I took care of that for you._

The pain in her voice breaks my heart.

I should be upset that she took the matter in her own hands, instead all I can think about is that she cares about me enough to do it.

I thought our friendship had been too damaged by the events of the past year and she proved me wrong. I've seen her with Ma, how she comforted her, the way she panicked after she got hurt. That's why I didn't hesitate when that man opened fire.

I'd do it again in a heartbeat.

That's what partners do. They back each other up regardless of the consequences.

I hear movements around the bed.

Please don't leave. Not yet.

Then the softest pressure on my hand.

I revel in her touch and allow myself to think that everything's gonna be alright.

Now more than ever, I feel the need to fight the darkness. This bad place doesn't scare me anymore.

They say there's always a light at the end of the tunnel. I'm determined to find it.

You just take care of my mother until then.

THE END


End file.
